My 72 going LS powered

[JOHNA01374]

Well Guys it's official. The Monte is going LS powered.

 

Over the winter I made a number of changes to y twin turbo 80 Cutlass to get it ready for summer fun and track duty. The manifolds and down pipes were sent out for coating, I got a few things cleaned up under the hood and the body work is 90% done. I'm gonna shoot it in SEM hot rod black as soon as I have a nice day and she'll be ready to cruise and race.

 

That means the Monte is going under the knife. As some might recall I had a ticking lifter last summer that appeared to go away. Well it showed it's face again and I believe it's collapsed now as I get an occasional backfire through the carb so it time to do something.

 

With Gas prices going up I figured I move forward with a small cube LS motor as my goal for this car is really just to drive and enjoy it as much as I can. I settled on the 5.3 LM7 truck engine. I figured the 6.0 was a bit big and the prices kept me away as well as 100K JY motors are in the $1200-$2000 range.

The idea of a 4.8 with a little boost really caught my attention and I almost made it happen but after a little research went with the 5.3.

 

I found the 5.3 complete top to bottom, front to back and only has 55K on the clock for the outrageous sum of $400. I already have a Holley HP EFI computer to run it and have the Holley harness on order.

 

As of right now the plan is to clean up the motor, Install a Z06 cam and springs, An LS6 manifold and put it in the car. I got the stock truck manifolds with it as I'm playing with the idea of doing a single turbo setup but it's not set in stone just yet although I have a nice 72mm Garret sitting on the shelf just looking for a home.

 

Need to talk to people that have done an LS swap in a Monte. I see dozens and dozens of Chevelle swaps on various forums but I'm not sure if the process is the same. I'm wondering about oil pans, front end accessories etc. What needs to be changed, moved etc?

 

Has anyone done a Monte swap with a 5.3 truck engine yet?

[Blue502]

I love your paint colour.Is it an off red or is it just the picture that makes it look like that?

Check Pace Performance for conversion parts.I'm sure a member here has done the swap.Can you post some pics of your Cutlass engine bay?

Thank

[JOHNA01374]

Thank you on the compliment. The original owner had the car reprinted a few years back. The paperwork I have says it's 95 dodge viper red. The pic looks a little different as it was snowy and overcast that day. On a summer day it looks a little darker than that.

 

I do have some engine bay pics of the cutlass here somewhere. Ill dig them up and post them. they're from last summer before everything was coated.

[JOHNA01374]

Here's the Cutlass Engine pics. I had just finished it enough to drive it home. Notice the wastegates aren't even hooked up and there is misc wires running all over the place.

 

When I have a few minutes i'll get some current pics. I've cleaned up the bay and coated the headers, downpipes and turbine housings.

 

[Blue502]

Very cool.Lots of room.Are those log manifolds?Did you make them up?I may try a blow through system later this year if my Ramjet doesn't cut it.Nice work.

[JOHNA01374]

They are just basic home made logs made from sch40 weld bends. I got suckered into making a set of real tube headers on a previous build. After several days of cutting, bending, cussing and welding they made ZERO additional power over the ugly logs and actually took longer to spool the turbos. Logs are just fine on a street car. If I was making 1000+ HP then it might be a different story.

 

If you're going to do turbos keep the ramjet manifold and spend the money on a tunable EFI system like the Holley HP EFI. I've done blow through systems in the past. They seem simple on the surface but you will have just as much invested and most likely not be as happy with the results. They do work but they're not much fun to drive everyday. Not to mention the headache of screwing with the Carb everytime the weather changes or want to turn up or down the boost..

 

 

[Blue502]

Thahks.I have a DFI.I know it's limited,but I have run 9.70s in the past.It worked untill I had to go bigger then 75# injecters.After that I got a FAST system.With all the new premade wiring harnesses a stock ECM may be a cheap alternative.

Nothing wrong with log manifolds.Simple and they fit.The FGMC is nice as it has a lot of room around the motor.Keep us posted.

[ss4ever]

http://www.fgmcc.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=355907&page=1

 

There is my post from when I started my LS swap which has a picture of the mounts I used, I used the stock F-body oil pan with the engine set back all the way on the mounts. I used the stock F-body accesories but no AC.

[JOHNA01374]

http://www.fgmcc.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=355907&page=1

 

There is my post from when I started my LS swap which has a picture of the mounts I used, I used the stock F-body oil pan with the engine set back all the way on the mounts. I used the stock F-body accessories but no AC.

 

Thank you. I read your post and see the last update was in Feb. Have you made any more progress on the car?

 

I have delayed my swap until winter as I'm gathering parts and really want to drive the Monte. I picked up a cheap set of lifters and tossed them in to cure the lifter problem. Turns out that three of the lifters were dying. When I pushed down the centers they would not fully expand and felt soft. How it didn't bend a push rod I have no clue.

 

I'm still on the look out for someone running the truck intake and I Like the idea of the additional torque. Even more so since I'm swapping the LS6 cam and losing a little low end.

[ss4ever]

 

I haven't done much with the car in a while, been doing a little bit too it every now and then but nothing worth noting.

 

I plan on getting mine running this summer.